Windows 8 on ARM kills the Windows software ecosystem

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Microsoft has given its users an unprecedented view into the development of Windows 8 but nothing matches the scope of the latest unveil. Steven Sinofksy himself has descended from his lofty throne and taken up pen and paper to describe Windows on ARM (WOA) in great detail. The full article is available at the Building Windows 8 Blog, though calling the 8,000+ word treatise a “post” stretches the definition of the word like Rosie O’Donnell slipping in to one of Kate Moss’s bikinis.

Redmond intends to ship WOA and Windows 8 x86/64 simultaneously, with strong channel support for both products. One significant difference between the two platforms is the degree of control MS is wielding. WOA systems, for example, will ship with desktop versions of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote. Microsoft has ad-supported versions of Excel and Word that it distributes to OEMs in the PC space, but you’ll never see the company say “All Dell and HP systems will ship with Office.”

Contrary to prior reports, WOA users will have access to the conventional Windows desktop — but there won’t be much for them to do with it. Sinofsky writes: “WOA does not support running, emulating, or porting existing x86/64 desktop apps. Code that uses only system or OS services from WinRT can be used within an app and distributed through the Windows Store for both WOA and x86/64. Consumers obtain all [WOA] software, including device drivers, through the Windows Store and Microsoft Update or Windows Update. (Emphasis added)

It’s hard to underemphasize just how huge a change that is. It’s one thing to say that ARM CPUs won’t support x86 emulation; something else entirely to split software delivery and installation. Up until now, one of the biggest differences between desktop and mobile operating systems has been the ability to install software. It’s true that Microsoft’s decision to wall off unapproved software installation is similar to the approach of Android and iOS — but iOS isn’t the same thing as OS X. Combining both of these decisions under the “Windows” brand could be disastrous, not because Microsoft is evil, but because it creates two entirely different user experiences on the basis of which ISA your CPU supports. What’s even more schizophrenic is that the entire point of WinRT was supposedly to eliminate the need to support multiple architectures and recompile code. This change doesn’t impact the programming model, but it undercuts the idea of a unified Windows.

Using Windows means being able to download a program from SourceForge, Download.com, MajorGeeks, or Microsoft’s own web page. Now, x86 developers who might want to recompile software to target ARM won’t be able to do so without going through the Microsoft store. The simple portability that’s defined Windows to such a degree that no one even thinks about it is gone. Sure, if you rely exclusively on things like Microsoft cloud services, or Office, you won’t notice. What about everyone else?

Even if we don’t see them straight away, there are going to be x86 tablets and ARM notebooks. If you own an x86 chip, you’ll be able to do all the things you do now, plus take advantage of the new UI. If you buy an ARM product, you get something that looks very much like a conventional tablet experience. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with that, but it’s not what people think of when they think “Windows.” Microsoft claims that users won’t confuse x86 and ARM devices, but it’s not clear how the company plans to address the problem.

Up until now, Windows 8 has straddled the gaps between its disparate platforms remarkably well, but this could seriously harm the operating system’s uptake. It’s not that the App Store model is morally evil, but that the Windows brand is going to be split between two families of devices. Microsoft might well have been better off calling its ARM effort “Windows Tablet” or even moving it to Windows Phone — WOA devices aren’t going to be Windows products in some of the ways the term has traditionally been applied. That’s not good for the brand, or for users, and it blurs one of the most important distinction between a device that’s essentially a toy and one that people can use for both work and creation. It’s possible that Microsoft will include the ability to load unapproved apps, similar to the way that unsigned drivers can be loaded in a 64-bit OS, but the company’s previous decision to force UEFI Secure Boot on ARM devices make this seem unlikely.

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http://ARMdevices.net/ Charbax

Microsoft has not said you can’t monetize your apps without Windows taking a cut. They just say the apps need to be verified through the Windows store. They likely also will do this for x86 because x86 security/bloatware also needs to be looked at. Something Microsoft should have done since 20 years ago, and that would have prevented all the bloatware and all the virus infested windows apps of the past 2 decades, which produce only hundreds of millions of backdoor infested zombie spammer pcs on the global network.

Joel Hruska

I’m not concerned with monetization; I’m sure there will be free apps. The concern is that instead of being able to download and find useful tools, anyone who creates x86 software that might’ve been available elsewhere will now have to create / submit the same app to MS and wait for approval.

Again, there are benefits to using the App Store model assuming Microsoft performs due diligence — but it creates two different experiences on the same platform.

Anonymous

Windows Ecosystem doesn’t always means windows 32bit apps. There are apps build for windows phone, windows embedded which are not compatibly to each other.
The great thing about windows 8, the apps can be made available for both arm and x86 systems using winrt, something that not possible before. Developer only need to write once for different type of architecture. If they extends this capability to windows phone, xbox, embedded devices by using the same framework, I think its a winner.

Evan Trimby

“Rosie O’Donnell slipping in to one of Kate Moss’s bikinis.”
I now hate you for giving me that mental image.

Chris Fernandez

Microsoft is following aple foosteps is nothing original is like aple store submit your app and they give the go or dismiss it. The price point will be the difference it will be no oem for woa. It have to be way better than the kindle fire for the same price or lower and have better integration and that is asking to much from microsoft.

mori bund

Thank you!
Now I’m sure WOA will be a no-go for me.

http://pulse.yahoo.com/_7QOBZ26TQDSDXR4AR4H7LTE2TI John

Whats with this word “ecosystem” that they use to describe phones and tables. Why not use user interface (UI). Here is the definition of ecosystem from an online dictionary”a system formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their environment”. See it does not work right and it sounds stupid!

http://profile.yahoo.com/SWJ4QK25GQQU42GMZIHZ3ZB35I Max Mctrony

Using Windows means being able to download a program from Download.com, FileOasis.com or Microsoft’s own web page.

Anonymous

Windows means being able to download a program from SourceForge, Download.com, MajorGeeks, or Microsoft’s own web page

Sorry MSFT. Can’t have it both ways. Market the product as Windows, but not let it have the historical capability of Windows. You might as well call it “Microsoft Metro” and take your chances. WOA will become what WOI (Itanium) and WOP (PowerPC) was to servers. Niche for its time then flame out.

I would much rather see how ARM will do on large scale server platforms with the WOA core. Lower power use, lower heat, more mips per watt.

This approach to ARM is so risk adverse and a complete duplication of the errors IBM made in the 90’s. You guys haven’t learned anything. Read your history books.

Je Saist

Joel… stating that Microsoft has handled the disparate gaps between the platforms “remarkably well” is… to use your own words from earlier in the article, is stretching the word “well” like Rosie trying to get on one of Kate Moss’s bikini’s.

Now, if you had said that Microsoft’s handling of the disparate gap between the platforms was a laughable joke considering Debian/GNU has been doing this multi-architectural thing for approaching 2 *DECADES* now…. your closing paragraph would had been as accurate and as thoughtful as the rest of your article.

Anonymous

Microsoft’s future- OneNote 2012 (2015) will be perfected only by using THEIR new hardware. OneNote and handwriting recognition is what Microsoft has been working on for the past two years. All handwriting programs that presently exist do not store and retreive documents reliably because of the inability to recognize handwriting on all of our computer devices. Operating systems (on hardware, PC’s, tablets, phones) have been programed to recognize TEXT only. It’s the only thing that computer engineers have programed into our computer circuitry, now and from the start when the first computer was built from ground up. Microsoft realized the potential in being able to handwrite, literally using a pen or your finger, on anything on your screen, name it, save it, store it and pull it up “safely and reliably” through search ( even by “handwriting” in the search function). Handwriting is what it’s all about. There exists not one single computer device out there (phone, tablet, slate, PC) that has this capability. There are compatability issues with every handwriting program on the market ( even Microsoft’s OneNote handwriting app ). It is complicated to store and retreive inked data on our computer devices and often the data is lost, again due to handwriting recognition, as computers, presently, have only been programed to recognize text. Microsoft’s Windows 8 and the accompanying “hardware” will change all of that. Microsoft realized by looking around the room, just as you can right now, that we all still use a pen and paper ( pads, sticky notes, papers stipped into our pockets- grocery lists, in our cars- directions, phone numbers etc). Look around right now. We all still use a pen and paper, despite being “programed” by the industry to think that we no longer need to rely on and SAVE anything involving handwriting. Microsoft is brilliant when it comes to patents and licensing agreements ( just look at the Windows phones- built to Microsoft’s exact specifications). Microsoft will sell their own hardware (phones, pads etc) in Microsoft’s retail stores, planned to be in malls etc, as close as possible to existing Apple stores. Microsoft will rule the market by not having sat back the last few years, as we all think as Apple sales soar, but by putting everything on hold to develop this NEW Technology.
Again, the new technollogy that Microsoft will unveil within the next year is a hardware system that reognizes handwriting, unlike all other computers that presently exist which were designed and programed to recognize text, only. How do I know all of this. We all know that Microsoft relies heavily on consumer input ( trial beta versions, free downloads…..). My involvement with Microsoft and the Microsoft OneNote team and it’s developers has been ongoing since early 2010, BRAINSTORMING this product.
Within the next few years Microsoft will rule the market. They are a smart company that will not be outdone by Apple. Apple may very well end up partnering with Microsoft as no other company will be able to catch up with Microsoft, technologically. Again, they have made sure of this by carefully planned patent and licensing agreements. You will see Microsoft go after Samsung, with whom they first started working with on touch screen technology, so that Samsung does not steal their ideas. Similarly they will go after Kindle (?), the reading tablet company. They have carefully released OneNote to Apple, smartly, to keep the name OneNote alive to Apple customers. However, OneNote moble for iPhone and OneNote for iPad is not the same product that the Microsoft store sells to IT’S customers. Windows 8 (handwriting) killer features which will soon be reveiled with the Release of Windows 8 and most importantly, Microsoft’s new hard-drive technology that will support handwriting recognition.
If you are a gambler this is the stock to buy. Microsoft.
Again, how do I know all of this. I have worked with Microsoft and it’s OneNote team on this project from the inception stage, early 2010 up till now. Twitter Microsoft OneNote @ silosdoc
Kevin Maloney,MD

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